on the broadcast tonight, coming home, an emotional return for the four americans killed this week in libya, as the president vows the sacrifice will never be forgotten. meanwhile, the rage against americans grows more violent. our team is on the ground in libya and egypt. and here it looks like it is done on the teacher's ke, being watched across this country. cold case, a little girl who never came home, and tonight, half a century later, a man whose alibi fell apart. also, the royal uproar over new and intruding photos on kate middleton and her husband. and tonight, invoking the memory of diana, nightly news begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

from nbc world headquarters in new york, this is nbc nightly news with brian williams. good evening, the news got worse for the united states overseas today as anti-u.s. protests over the film that denigrates the prophet, muhammed, spread to nearly 20 countries now. the violence has erupted in what is really the cradle of the arab spring in cairo, where the ambassador was stormed. benghazi, the attack that killed four americans, including the first ambassador to die in decades. this was a somber day at andrew's air force base as the four americans came home, as the leaders of their government looked on. it is where we begin our coverage tonight with nbc's andrea mitchell. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> reporter: to the mournful

tones of "nearer my god to thee," the caskets came home, four public servants, arriving to the embrace of family and the secretary of state, brought together in grief. >> today, we bring home four americans who gave their lives for our country, and our values. >> reporter: four americans, the president said, who knew the danger and accepted it. they didn't simply embrace the american ideal, they lived it. >> glenn dougherty never shied from adventure, he believed in his life he could make a difference, by the calling as a navy seal. tyrone woods spent two decades as a navy seal, multiple tours in iraq and afghanistan.

>> he had the arms of a healer and warrior. earning the distinction as a certified medic. >> reporter: sean smith, serving in the air force and then the foreign service. >> he knew the perils of this calling. >> reporter: they loved service and enjoyed adventure, none more than the one-time peace corp volunteer who became the ambassador to a war-torn nation. chris steven's sister spoke about him. >> he spoke about the security but really didn't make a deal of it. he more spoke of how much he enjoyed, you know, the work he was doing. >> he was known not only for his courage, but for his smile. goofy, but contagious, with the california cool. >> reporter: she vowed not to retreat.

so we will wipe away our tears, stiffen our spines and face the future undaunted. >> greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. the flag they served under now carries them home. >> reporter: the president and hillary clinton in a rare public glimpse of shared emotions. today, u.s. officials said there was no prior intelligence about the attack in libya. tonight, the people in this building are in mourning, but vowing to honor the fallen by carrying on their mission. >> andrea mitchell, after a very sad day at the state department in washington, thanks. and meanwhile, the rage over this american-made video that has offended so many people throughout the islamic world is sadly not dying down. the protest expanded, as we said, across the region today. our chief correspondent, richard engel, is following this above tahrir square.

and richard, i guess if there is good news the protests are relatively small and relatively widespread? >> reporter: good evening, brian, it is important to keep it in context, not like the entire middle east is up in flames or americans are being hunted down, but there were many small violent protests, spreading to many countries. and the extremists seemed to have found from their perspective, is an effective tactic, attacking the embassies. >> reporter: the u.s. outposts are easy targets, in yemen for the second day, the furious protesters tried to burn the american flags as riot police fire water canons. gunshots can be heard. why? because they say the u.s. is not doing enough against the makers of the now famous anti-islam video.

and in sudan, protesters turned their rage on the british and german embassies. those countries had nothing to do with the video, but the foreign western powers, they believe, that is enough. in cairo, the government called off massive planned demonstrations. the president went on television to urge calm. but clashes continue. >> this has moved beyond the demonstration of an offensive video. it is an opportunity for radicals in many countries to express their anger with the united states. and they have learned from watching each other that the u.s. outposts are not as protected as they thought. i asked why the clashes are continuing, even though u.s. officials have criticize the video. not enough, they say. that the response from the united states was late?

>> obama, all of your government, it was very late. >> reporter: so all of this is because the response was late? but there was little time for interviews. we should turn around here. the police are charging. >> you see what happened, what -- just -- the egyptian government is doing with the egyptian people because -- because of the americans. >> reporter: there were demonstrations today in nearly 40 cities across the region and beyond. but as bad as it looks, the demonstrations were generally small. but in what will have implications for security worldwide, the extremists have found a weak spot to attack a super power they believe is responsible for an offense against islam. and radicals, brian, are still looking for other soft targets. today, they attacked a u.n. outpost here in egypt, and several american chain restaurants in the region.

brian? >> interesting to watch this throughout the weekend, richard engel in cairo, thank you, and we're getting a first look at what happened inside the u.s. consulate in libya, the damage from the attack that killed our ambassador and three others. >> reporter: brian the attack that has killed the american ambassador here in benghazi has not only shocked people back home. but many libyans are saddened by the attack against a country that stood by them during a revolution and helped to save a city. on the streets of benghazi, two very different feelings. here, demonstrators burn an american flag in protests to the internet video they say insults islam. but across town, the others denounce the terrorism. they support the united states and their ambassador, chris stevens, who was a support system.

>> he was an excellent diplomat, and really cared about the people and the future of libya. >> reporter: days after the attack, the consulate still smolders, and the ambassador was rushed to a nearby hospital where doctors tried to help him. >> there was difficulty with his air ways, 20 minutes later, we pronounced his death. >> reporter: today, there was an emotional scene after the attack, as the government is convinced it was a pre-planned assault and is conducting investigations. so was the fbi. a team of agents arrived in benghazi today to sift through the ashes and look for clues. before arriving here, the fbi spent hours interviewing witnesses and victims evacuated to germany. they are also receiving cooperation from the libyan government who say they have several suspects in their custody, who possibly have important information about the attack. >> amon, thank you for your reporting.

u.s. officials report tonight that two u.s. service members were killed, several others wounded in a taliban attack on a joint u.s.-british base in afghanistan, the same camp where prince harry was based. although we're told he was not injured or near this attack, earlier this week the taliban had threatened to do everything in its power to kill prince harry on the job, after british forces publicly announced his deployment to that base. and now to chicago, where after five days of the teacher strike that has idled 400,000 kids, both sides say a deal is at hand. our chief education correspondent, rehema ellis, is with us from chicago. >> reporter: good evening, the heavy lifting is over, that, from the school department. and representatives of the teacher's union met for a short while, updating members on the framework of a deal. they say they expect to vote on a deal on sunday. if approved, kids will be back

in school on monday. we're still waiting for details on the compromises reached for the major issues. the teacher evaluation linked with students on performance tests, and a rehiring policy for laid-off teachers, plus a possible 16% increase for teachers who make an average over $75,000 a year, in a district already struggling financially. all week, parents showed strong support for teachers, but there is concern on whether or not that would last into another week. a big teacher rally is planned for tomorrow, but the big excitement will come on monday. if indeed there is an agreement and kids go back to school in chicago. brian? >> rehema ellis covering the story for us in chicago. up next as we continue on friday, a crime from the eisenhower era, involving a missing girl, one of the oldest cold cases in american history, now closed. and later, kate middleton, on the photo scandal that the

palace is calling an invasion of privacy. and a view you may have not seen before from 240 miles up.

when you think about the america of 1957, you think of a more innocent time in post-war america, including safer things. things like child kidnapping were rare compared to today. but on a snowy winter's night, in a small town west of chicago, a seven-year-old girl disappeared and later was found dead. and after all this time, the story finally has an ending. our report tonight from nbc's kevin tibbles. it has been one of the oldest cold cases in history. >> reporter: in december of 1957, seven-year-old maria ridulph was playing outside her home in the small town of sycamore, when she went missing.

kathy chapman was with maria, when a man approached offering her a piggyback. front page news, the pretty auburn-haired girl, they say, was snatched on the street. the families nationwide worried for their own children's safety. 55 years ago, this story was of such national concern, president eisenhower and fbi director j. edgar hoover asked for daily updates. later, her body was found in a forest some 120 miles from home. among the suspects, the local boy, john mccullough, who said he was in chicago for a military medical exam. later, there was a call that his alibi fell apart. his train ticket from that day was found unused. mccullough, now 72, was a washington state police officer, arrested in seattle, and extradited to illinois for trial. today, a judge found him guilty of murder.

>> this young girl snatched away at seven years old. so i can see no victory in any of this. >> reporter: during the trial, the court heard how the suspect's own mother reportedly said from her death bed in 1994, those two little girls, the one that disappeared, john did it. john mccullough will be sentenced in november. kevin tibbles, nbc news, chicago. up next, her carefree appearance can be deceiving. tonight, a troubling problem for kate middleton.

the world woke up this morning to reports that topless photos of the duchess of cambridge, kate middleton, were published in a french magazine, taken while she and her husband, prince william, were on vacation in france.

to some, it brings back upsetting memories of diana who could never escape the camera lens. nbc's sara james is traveling with the royal couple. >> reporter: kate, today in malaysia, smiling, composed, her head covered as she visited a mosque with prince william. she said nothing, but privately, there photos published of kate, circulating on the internet. a spokesperson for the royals called it a grotesque and unjustifiable invasion of privacy, and moved quickly to file a lawsuit against the magazine. the magazine's editor called the reaction, disproportionate, saying that it was common around the world. but kate is not any woman. she is the wife of the future

king of england, and this latest incident evokes painful memories. 16 years ago, prince william's mother, diana, died in a crash while being chased by the paparazzi. and tonight, the palace didn't hesitate to draw parallels, say it reminds them of the worst excesses of the press and paparazzi during the life of the princess of wales. this comes just weeks after photos surfaced over prince harry, more speculation on the royal family and the willingness to cater to it, no matter the -- no matter the cost. for the >> if there are places she feels that nobody can take photographs, and frankly if you can't be safe on a place that has 640 acres, where can you? >> reporter: the royal couple's asia tour continues, next stop, borneo, with a welcome

distraction. sara james, nbc news, kuala lumpur. and look at what the first mars rover found on the surface. the scientists nicknamed them blueberries, believed to be iron oxide formation first believed to be discovered by the rover years ago. up next, our interview with a group of people who soon will fly over where you live, no matter where you live. they will tell us about where they live.

finally tonight, a long distance dedication to the crew of the international space station. a lot of folks forget those people are living up there. we have links on our website that allow you to find out when it is coming over where you live at night. for example, tomorrow morning just before 6:00, it will be a bright dot streaking across the sky over new york city, weather permitting, and every morning for the next few days. among those on board, astronaut sunny williams, with 155 consecutive days in space, the record holder among women, and also the top space walker spent outside the space craft.

sunny becomes commander. we recently talked to her and the crew. hello, sunny, we loved what you had done to your hair. yeah, special greetings to conan o'brien behind you, with the magnificent hair do. with the shuttle program over, astronauts these days have to hitch a ride with our former cold war russians. sunny doesn't mind that, pointing out they launched on the test project, the first ever joint-american russian flight. >> it sort of was the first step in our international friendship. and i think we have come a long way. i consider the guys here my brothers. >> and they do live like a family there, joe acaba is the other member on the space station, returning to earth this weekend. joe, how do you describe the station there?

is it like a small new york city apartment or a small ranch house? what is it like? well, i think this place is bigger than the place i live in, in houston, like a five-bedroom house. >> the space station makes 16 orbits around the earth every day, they know there are folks down here who track their orbits and watch the fly-byes. >> we do appreciate it, we're working hard, this is an amazing laboratory, and we can't do it without everybody's support. so we hope what we're doing here will get people excited about the sciences. >> it is the images that may just get them interested. spectacular long-exposure images of stars, and views of the earth as seen from 240 miles above, at 17,000 miles an hour. what events on earth are you able to look for and see from up there? >> we can see all the natural events that happen up here, like

for example, hurricanes and fires. they're really evident. i mean, you even see streaks of airplanes across the sky when they make the vapor trails. it keeps us connected when you look out the window. you are looking right back at the planet, and can't help but wondering what they're doing. >> i want to thank the crew for having us, we are watching you, and at least in my house, if i'm aware of an over-flight on a good night, i go out to the porch, and we wave like hell, i don't know if you can see us. >> our six pink bodies will be waving back at you. >> thank you very much. >> coming soon with skies over you, with thanks to the crew. that is our broadcast, i'm brian williams, and lester holt will be with you on the weekend. we hope to see you on monday night. have a good weekend.

right now it's 6:00. a bay area campus on alert after a violent attack and a new police warning. good evening. thanks for joining us on this friday. >> students at san jose state on edge tonight after an attack on campus. the university tells us a group of men assaulted someone early this morning. nbc bay area's kimberly terry has the new details tonight. >> reporter: students at san jose state university are on alert after a 21-year-old man was jumped overnight. >> i was lal concerned. i was actually out that night at that time. so, you know, it made me nervous. >> reporter: the victim who is not a student, told campus police a group of four or five men, one armed with a pocket